Lulu and Blogging

I am struggling to like the new and unlikely union of Lou Reed and Metallica. In case you haven't heard, they recorded a double CD and are now streaming the tunes online. It kind of leaves me speechless, which could indicate that we are listening to genius or it might be that Lulu is the worst album ever made. It's really difficult to say.

I have been a Lou Reed fan for ages, but there is not a single Metallica CD in my collection. I think the only song I could recognize as Metallica's is "Enter Sandman". I don't hate it, but it's not really my cup of tea. I am not even going to attempt to review Lulu. Just listen to it and see what you think. I should point out that I am not afraid of heavy music. After all, I do have some Tool in my collection as well as some Black Sabbath. But, I am not a metal head.

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I am not sure if this post reflects a return to blogging. Occasionally, I recall with fondness some of the post I have published here. And, sometimes, I think about digital diets. Many blogs have died with the rise of Facebook, mine included. I have a love/hate relationship with Facebook for many reasons. But, I persevere mostly because I have immediate connections with family and friends and it's a great place to share family photos. It's also a huge waste of time.

I tried Google+, but aside from Circles (which is a really fabulous idea), I have little good to say about it. Generally, my friends on Google+ are the same as my friends on Facebook (though there are fewer of them), so when I realized that I was posting the same info twice, I stopped updating Google+. As for Twitter, I have had two accounts and I can conclusively say that I hate Twitter. It's truly amazing to me that so many people are addicted to it. Maybe if I liked Justin Beaver, things would be different.

The real problem, of course, it that it is impossible to keep up with everything that has been posted by friends, and if you tried, you would never get anything done. You would be reading and commenting all day long.

And that leaves Flickr, the place where I spend most of my time. Flickr is my favourite place to be. That's not to say that Flickr is not without its problems. I could name several things I hate about Flickr.

I may post again, or I may not. It's unclear.

A Look at my CD Collection, part 4 - Laurie Anderson


I acquired a cassette copy of Home of the Brave years ago from a friend (Thanks Pete).  At the time, I was fascinated by the guitar playing of Adrian Belew, who showed up on the three glorious King Crimson albums in the 1980s, and many more later on.  The first of that trilogy (Discipline) remains as perhaps my most favourite album of all time, but more on that another day. Anyway, Adrian plays some wicked guitar on Mister Heartbreak and Home of the Brave.

Later, I added some Laurie Anderson vinyl to my collection, most of which I still have.  Yes, I am old enough to remember vinyl.  I regret selling some of my records when I became infatuated with compact discs, mostly because early digital mastering really sucked, but it has gotten better.  Still, there is something about the warmth of a vinyl recording that is lacking on CD.

The most perplexing thing about Laurie Anderson is not her weird music; that, I like.  The first track of hers I ever heard was O Superman and I couldn't really believe what I was hearing.  I still think this song is awesome and I continue to appreciate the bizarreness of it.  I have included the video below, thanks to YouTube.  As I was saying, the most perplexing thing about Laurie Anderson is that she married Lou Reed.  I am a huge Lou Reed fan and I have all of his albums and those of The Velvet Underground too.

(see other posts about Lou: one, two, three)

So, although I like Reed's music, isn't it generally agreed that he is somewhat ugly?  Who am I to judge?, you might ask.  Good point. Someone once said that beauty is only skin deep.

Anyway, I have three Laurie Anderson CDs and some vinyl.  I like her music very much.

Take a Walk on the Wild Side



I bought two pairs of shoes last weekend in Montreal. On Saturday night, we had a couple of drinks at Bily Kun, and met up with a friend from TO.  Damn, it gets cold early in Montreal.  Winter must suck in Montreal.

"Lou Reed got married and didn't invite me. I mean is it because he thought I'd bring too many people? I don't get it. He could have at least called. I mean he's doing so great. Why doesn't he call me?"

'Tis true, the King of New York City got married to Laurie Anderson on April 12. It's also true that he didn't invite me. I'll award bonus points if you can identify the source of that quote without consulting with Google or any other search engine. Just off the top of your head, please.

Disco Mystic has always confused me. I think I understand Metal Machine Music well enough, but Disco Mystic is perplexing. I mean, I think it's awesome, maybe one of Reed's best compositions. Maybe it's just 'cause I am a fan of repetitive music. but, I have always wondered if it is a joke. Is it?

As a whole, The Bells is way better than Growing up in Public - the mediocre follow-up that I ignore of my CD shelves - but far worse than the Blue Mask. Oh yeah, Under the Bottle, Waves of Fear, and the title track (perhaps my fav Lou Reed song of all time) are simply awesome. Well, if you like serious electric guitar with some feedback mixed in with a few softer tunes.

Why am I discussing Lou Reed, you might ask? Well, I realized that I haven't yet picked up Hudson River Wind Meditations, which is unusual but understandable considering it's an import ($$$). And then there is the photography. Yes, Lou is a photographer. Did you know that? We are simpatico.

BTW, this is an interesting post about the Bells, here.

Sunday Morning



From one of my favourite bands of all time. Happy Sunday morning.

Taste the whip, in love not given lightly
Taste the whip, now plead for me

Favourite Albums, #4 (previous entries: The Clash - London Calling, John Cale - Music for a New Society, Beck - Mutations)

Apparently, Brian Eno once said something like: "only about 1,000 people ever bought a Velvet Underground album, but every one of them formed a rock and roll band." This may have been an overstatement, but it speaks to the enormous influence that the VU have had and continue to have on music.

The Velvet Underground & Nico, the first release from John Cale, Lou Reed, Sterling Morrison, Maureen "Moe" Tucker, and Nico, is a fine album. The AllMusic Guide says: "Few rock albums are as important as The Velvet Underground and Nico, and fewer still have lost so little of their power to surprise and intrigue more than 30 years after first hitting the racks."

Cale's droning viola and unusual keyboards, combined with Lou Reed's inventive and provocative lyrics, make the music stand out from most other music. There has really been nothing else quite like it.

Technorati Tags: music, Velvet Underground, Nico, John Cale, Lou Reed

Set Fire to Anything
Set Fire to the Air

Music for a New Society

Back in April, I posted a kind of review of the Legacy Edition of the Clash's London Calling. Here are few comments about another favourite album, John Cale's Music for a New Society.

The AllMusic Guide describes the music as "calm, spare, and spectral" and the songs as a "handful of stories of terribly damaged lives." Finally, AMG says that this album is "Spare, understated, and perhaps a masterpiece." I agree. If there is any one album deserving of the title masterpiece, this may be it.

(I'd be curious to know what other albums people regard as masterpieces).

It's hard to say why I am drawn to an album that is so dark and even depressing. The music is ambient in a haunting and occasionally frightening way. To my ears, there is something unsettling about the composition. Perhaps because of that, I listen to other Cale albums more frequently, albums like Paris 1919, Fear, Slow Dazzle, and Helen of Troy. Perhaps the musical enjoyment is circumscribed by the intensity of the listening experience.

It has always irritated me that Lou Reed, another of my favourite musicians, is far more famous than Cale, Reed's co-founder of the Velvet Underground. Sure, I like Reed's music, but John Cale is a musician and not a pop star. If anything perplexes me it is that Cale sees himself as living in Reed's shadow. He even mentions Lou Reed in the first paragraph of his autobiography.

Some John Cale links:

1) Official site
2) John Cale Homepage
3) Fear is a Man's Best Friend
4) Wikipedia

"Roll up the history books, burn the chairs
Set fire to anything, set fire to the air
They're riding to begin and running at the end
'Cause mama said, you take your life in your hands"

Technorati Tags: music, John Cale, Music for a New Society

A (very strange) Dream

Last night I dreamed that I met Lou Reed in a rather strange manner. I was walking north on Yonge Street, planning to go to an autograph session that Lou was doing at a downtown record store. I know, this seems out of character for Mr. Reed. Anyway, his limo passed by and then stopped. He started signing autographs on the street. I was second in line.

The really weird thing is that, in my dream, Lou had enormous breasts. They were Jayne Mansfield large, and maybe even larger, and covered in a nice crisp white blouse. Suddenly, I feel that I shouldn't be writing any of this... I mean, I like Lou's music, and I am aware of the vague gender phases that Lou has passed through. Perhaps the less said about the gender ambiguity of this dream, the better. Enough people assume that I am gay or bisexual (not that there's anything wrong with that) and this might make things worse.

At first, I asked Lou to sign my watch, but that seemed weird. I discovered that I had one of his CDs with me and asked him to sign that. I remember nothing after that.

Is that strange, or what?

Tags: dreams, Lou Reed